


Ghost next door

by 7years



Category: Produce 101 (TV), Wanna One (Band)
Genre: M/M, dumb roommates Ongniel though they're not actually roommates, first encounter, not horror I swear, unless cheesy plots are your nightmares
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-02
Updated: 2019-01-02
Packaged: 2019-10-02 14:55:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17266250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/7years/pseuds/7years
Summary: An unexpected friend makes an appearance in Jaehwan's life.Part ofWhen Dusk ArrivesWebzineProject.





	Ghost next door

"Dear Mister ghost. I appreciate your taste in music but I hope you won't continue to sing my song again."

 

Silence.

 

"Don't get me wrong, it's not like you sounded bad but it just kinda gives me the creeps. Not your voice! Just, your singing…" Jaehwan scratches his head as he sighs. Maybe he should play his guitar. After all, that was what got him here in the first place, talking to nobody ("A ghost!" Seongwoo's voice reminds him) on his balcony on a Friday night, strumming a nameless melody on his guitar.

"This is so stupid. Why did those two leave me alone…" he mutters.

 

**10 minutes earlier**

"It's a ghost. There's no doubt about it." Seongwoo says, immediately earning him a groan from Jaehwan. "You're kidding, right?" It wasn't a question. But Seongwoo's lips are stretching into a thin, grim line. He looks as solemn as when he announced that he's going to be a vegetarian. It doesn't matter that the resolve lasted a whole two and a half days; he was serious then and he is serious now.

"Are you sure? Maybe it's just a stalker?" Daniel suggests, his hopeful tone holding no doubt over which circumstance he thinks is more favourable. 

"That's just as bad! What if he wants to kill me!" Jaehwan hugs himself in his panic and starts pacing the living room. No, he's too young. He has places to go, things to do…

"You can't die tonight. You still owe me for lunch on Tuesday."

And friendships to reconsider. He can be friends with Daniel without being friends with Seongwoo too, right? The guy doesn't even live here.

"And how can a stalker stalk you on the tenth floor anyway? I'm telling you, it's a spirit from one of those old stuff they're keeping next door." Seongwoo has his face pressed to the glass of the sliding door, peering outside to the balcony that's empty except for an upturned chair.

"Oh my god, I think you're right." While Daniel tends to agree with everything Seongwoo says, Jaehwan really doesn't appreciate the way he drags the words slowly and his eyes widen, like he's having some sort of epiphany. "Jisung did say the apartment had been unoccupied even before he moved in, and that—"

_BZZZZ!!!_

"It's the ghost!" Daniel almost yells as he literally jumps onto Seongwoo, squashing the latter further into the couch. "Ask him to go away!" he pleads towards Jaehwan.

"What? There's no ghost! Seongwoo, look what you've done." Jaehwan glares at Seongwoo who's busy patting the big boy's back.

"I didn't do anything." Seongwoo's voice is muffled against the folds of Daniel's hoodie. "The ghost must have come here for you."

Jaehwan feels a headache blossoming and suppresses a groan. Their doorbell buzzes again and this time it's accompanied by some gentle knocking. "And the ghost knocks because it's the polite thing to do." Jaehwan mutters while walking towards the door.

Wait. What if it's the stalker? Shit. Jaehwan stops in his track. Would he rather face a ghost or a stalker? But the voice was from the balcony. How would a person get from the balcony to their front door? Unless…

Jaehwan looks at Seongwoo who's advancing towards him with Daniel clutching his shirt from behind. They walk pass Jaehwan towards the door.

"Seongwoo, no! What if it's a person?" Jaehwan whispers loudly.

"So? Then you can tell him to fuck off." He stops walking anyway and looks at Jaehwan expectantly. Jaehwan huffs out a sigh in response and walks with reluctant steps to the door to see through the peep hole, only to find…

Nothing. There's nobody outside their door. He opens the door tentatively, peeking carefully before opening it wider. He bravely pokes his head out to check the corridor. It's empty.

"Strange." Jaehwan almost jumps from Seongwoo's voice behind him. "Looks like it really is a ghost."

"Go away, you ghost!" Daniel shouts from behind Seongwoo, causing Jaehwan to immediately close the door. "What the hell are you doing?" he hisses at Daniel. "Someone might still be out there listening or watching us!"

"You mean some _thing_." Seongwoo corrects him. "Because I certainly didn't see anyone out there."

Daniel visibly shivers while rubbing his own arms. "I'm getting goosebumps."

"Me too." Seongwoo mirrors the younger's action. "Oh well. Time for us to go." He moves back towards the couch. "They're waiting for us."

"What? You can't leave me here!" Jeahwan watches in dismay as the other two move about the living room, picking up keys and phones.

"You wanna come with us then?" Daniel offers without looking up from his phone. "Hyunbin is already there."

"I can't. I already told you. Tutoring at 8.30 tomorrow." Jaehwan mumbles in defeat, pouting a little. Seongwoo approaches him and puts a hand on his shoulder. "It's okay, the ghost will keep you company tonight. Maybe you can try talking to him. Who knows, he might be your muse after this." Jaehwan shrugs the hand off with an indignant huff.

"And if it's someone who wants to kill me? How will you live with your regret after this?" He turns towards Daniel, advancing slowly with his eyes wide. "Knowing that you could've stayed with me tonight but you chose to go out anyway?"

His roommate pushes his face away with an uncertain chuckle. "You're being weird."

"Ghost or person," Seongwoo looks up from putting on his shoes, "he did say he loves you so I'm sure you'll be fine." Oh how Jaehwan would love to wipe the smirk off his face. But Jaehwan never wins against Seongwoo and frankly this conversation is making his headache worse so he just sighs in exasperation and shoo them off.

"Go. Go and have fun while I wait here for my doom. If I die tonight, I'll make sure to haunt your dreams forever."

Daniel looks like he's considering the possibility of that happening and doesn't like his chances but Seongwoo just laughs while he drags Daniel out the door. "And here I thought you didn't believe in ghosts."

"I don't!" Jaehwan closes the door after them, but not before he hears Daniel asking Seongwoo if he'll stay the night later. Jaehwan drags his feet back to the empty living room, sighing for the umpteenth time. He looks towards the balcony and sees his guitar leaning against the sliding door.

 

This is stupid.

 

**20 minutes earlier**

The night is still and so silent that the slide of the door as he closes it feels grating and offensive. As Jaehwan grapples with the door - _why won't you stay on your track?_ \- to make sure it's closed properly, he feels mildly apologetic, like he just rudely interrupted someone's peaceful slumber. Although, who sleeps this early anyway? And who stays outside on the balcony at night for some peace and quiet? Only Jaehwan. Jaehwan and his guitar.

He slowly settles into his chair while keeping the noises to the bare minimum, unwilling to cause even more disturbance to the night. He closes his eyes as he leans back, taking in the silence and feeling slightly melancholic.

 _Or dramatic._ He can hear Daniel says in his playful tone. Jaehwan internally shrugs. Daniel can say whatever he wants, but there's no doubt in his mind that playing the guitar outside at night really ups Jaehwan's songwriting prowess. Even now his fingers are starting to strum to an unknown tune as he tries not to think of the upcoming presentation next Monday or the leftover stir-fry in the fridge he might eat later or the call to his mum earlier, which reminds him that he hadn't bought a bus ticket to go home yet, but he needs to confirm the event date with his lecturer, but that means going to her office which he rather not, although if he goes there he can drop by the post office to pick up—

Wait. Where is this heading again? His fingers stop moving. Jaehwan sighs when he realizes that he doesn't remember the tune at all. What a waste. He strums another tune. _This one_ he remembers. He's been repeating this tune for a few nights now, and although it might still be too early to call it a song, he already has the words for most parts.

He plays and sings without a pause, and for the parts with no lyrics he just hums the melody. This is a very crucial part of a song's development, when everything's just starting to come together. But it has to grow and develop naturally. He doesn't force it. [Never](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmbMEZq8tIg).

Jaehwan's confidence grow as he sings. _"The words that linger deep inside, I love you."_

_"I love you."_

 

**1 week earlier**

"It's okay mum, I don't need the other room." Minhyun slides the balcony door open and leans against it. "I'm thinking of putting my desk outside on the living room anyway. Yes, I'm sure." He laughs as he goes back inside and maneuvers across the living room still scattered with his mother's stuff. He listens to more storage suggestions from his mother before ending the call with a promise to keep her updated.

Minhyun sings softly to himself while he continues to transport empty canvases and boxes of books to the spare room. His mother offered to come over the weekend to help him get the the place cleaned up but he was adamant that he will do it himself. It's the least he could do after she lets him use the apartment.

Just as he's trying to decide if he wants to change the position of the book cases he hears the soft strumming of a guitar coming from outside. He checks the time. Almost the same time as yesterday. He pads softly to the balcony to listen more closely, feeling his heart beats faster in anticipation. It feels wrong, listening in secret like this, but how does he tell his new neighbor that he can hear him/her play? That might just make them think that they're disturbing him, and then they won't play anymore.

Minhyun carefully sits in the chair he left outside earlier that day, listening to the calming tune. Suddenly a guy's voice drifts in and Minhyun turns towards it in surprise. Of course that just means staring at the wall between their balconies so after a while Minhyun sits back and closes his eyes, enjoying the warmth of the voice and letting his imagination run wild as he tries to attach a face to the voice. He can live with this for a while longer.

 

**Present day**

Minhyun shuts his front door quietly. He rang the doorbell twice and even knocked but nobody came to the door. He sighs, disappointed in himself for slipping up earlier. He didn't even realized that he _sang out loud omg_  until he heard a curse and the sound of something crashing to the floor. The horror started to sink in when he heard the loud thud of something (or worse, someone) bumping into the sliding door before the door opened and closed.

He figured now would be a good time to introduce himself to his neighbor but maybe the poor guy was too weirded out by his action and doesn't want anything to do with him. Maybe he should try again tomorr—

_"Go away, you ghost!"_

Go away… ghost? Was that meant for him?

Minhyun opens the door again to look at his neighbor's door but it's still closed. Astonished, he goes back inside and just stands in his living room, contemplating what he should do. Maybe continuing his neighbor's solo singing session was not a great way to announce his presence but he can make this right, can't he? Just…maybe not tonight.

Seeing that there's nothing he can do for now, Minhyun turns on his laptop to work on his essay. It's when he's about to type out his second thesis statement that he hears it; the unmistakable sound of his neighbor's guitar playing. Whereas every night previously and even earlier tonight he would find himself on the balcony upon the sound, now he sits up anxiously, thinking that he should stop this listening-in-secret business and close the sliding door. But he can't help feeling like it's calling for him now, especially after what happened earlier.

So once again Minhyun is outside, wondering if and how he should make his presence known. But the guy is talking now while the strumming continues.

"I mean, I get that I might be attractive to some people but I don't find having a stalker ghost flattering. Maybe we can try being friends? Assuming you're not murderous or anything like that."

Minhyun feels his ears tingle at the mention of ghost. Maybe the ghost comment _was_ directed to him? The strumming continues for a while before the tune changes.

"On second thought, maybe you should go somewhere else. Daniel won't be able to sleep alone if you're around. I'm not sure if he's even coming back tonight."

Minhyun's heartbeat quickens when he realizes that no one is responding to the voice. Is he really talking to Minhyun?

"I'm also sorry if my playing disturbs you but I promise I won't play for too long."

Minhyun has a burgeoning urge to say something but he also wants the guy to continue talking so he just listens in amusement and anticipation. The strumming gradually turns softer until Minhyun has to move closer to the wall separating them, almost leaning against it to hear better. The sound eventually stops altogether.

"Well!" the neighbor says loudly. "Never will I listen to Seongwoo again." There's a sound of something scraping the floor before he hears some indignant mumbling. "Asking me to talk to a ghost. What the hell was he thinking? What was _I_ thinking?" Minhyun hears the sound of the sliding door opening. "Oh and on the off chance that there really _is_ a ghost listening, don't take this personally but please don't sing my song again. Okay? Thanks."

Minhyun suppresses a giggle. "Okay," he says out loud and then listens for a sound from next door but his response is met with utter silence. Dammit. Did he just scare the guy again? He goes to the front of the balcony with the idea of quickly peeking to the other side over the wall, just to make sure his neighbor didn't faint or something…

"AHHH!"

"Whoa!"

Minhyun takes a step back before going forward again slowly. The person on the other side is also leaning forward against the railing near his side of the wall, facing him. Minhyun smiles, even as the other guy sports a shocked look.

"Hi." Minhyun's voice is softer than he intended. He clears his throat. His neighbor doesn't respond immediately but he continues to look at Minhyun with his mouth open for a few seconds longer than Minhyun is comfortable with before he finally speaks, "You're not a ghost."

Minhyun lets out an embarrassed chuckle. "I'm not."

The guy shakes his head distractedly. "I'm sorry. I'm just… I wasn't expecting anyone to be here. I mean, there." Minhyun shrugs, keeping the smile on his face. "Well, now you know. I'm Minhyun."

"Um. Hi? I mean, hi. I'm Jaehwan." Jaehwan tilts his head to the side. "Were you… Uhh, did you just move in?" Jaehwan has his brows furrowed, looking confused.

"Yes, I moved in last week."

"Oh. Were you the one who… Umm…" Jaehwan trails off while looking away from Minhyun.

"Yes, that was me." The way Jaehwan whips his head up towards Minhyun makes him flinch back slightly. "I'm sorry if I scared you earlier. I really didn't mean it. I just… It just slipped out of me without me realizing it." Jaehwan's expression had turned unreadable, and it makes Minhyun more nervous. "I was just reading a book at that time, and you were singing, and then I…yeah." Minhyun bites his lips in a nervous gesture. "You sounded great by the way," he adds lamely.

"You were listening to me singing the whole time just now?" Minhyun cannot decipher whether there's anger in the disbelief tone.

"Uhh…yes?"

"Were you also, perhaps, listening to me singing yesterday?" Jaehwan asks slowly and cautiously.

"…yes." _Please please please stop there._

"Oh." Jaehwan's eyes flicker away from Minhyun, like he's turning Minhyun's response over to really get what he's saying. Minhyun can't let him ask his next question.

"How about the day bef—"  
"Would you like to come over?"

"Oh?" Jaehwan looks surprised over the invitation. So does Minhyun. "Go over there?" Jaehwan points to his neighbor. "Now?"

Minhyun nods, not trusting his voice. His voice lead him to too many awkward situations in one night already.

"Okay. I… Okay." Jaehwan nods once but his gaze remains on Minhyun for a couple more seconds before he moves away.

 

Jaehwan stands rooted on the spot after he closed his sliding door, trying to wrap his head around what just happened. The guy next door, Minhyun, was listening to him singing! Not just today but yesterday too! And maybe even the day before! He feels blood rushing to his face as the reality of the situation really hits him.

 _Oh my god._ He even said that he sounded good! Jaehwan cups his hands to his face. He feels so giddy he wants to laugh. He can't go next door now! His face must be all red!

No no, that won't do. Jaehwan fans his face with his hands as he takes deep breaths. He already told Minhyun he's coming. He has to go. Okay. He can do this. Deep breaths. Let’s go. 

He makes a mental note to let Daniel know that he managed to meet the ghost tonight as he presses the doorbell to Minhyun's apartment. His heart is pounding a bit too hard for a casual meeting but at least he's not shaking or anything like that. Minhyun opens the door almost immediately, and while Jaehwan didn't get to see Minhyun properly in the dim light of the balcony and the haze of his confusion earlier, he is now greeted with blinding halo effects and swirling rose petals as the full force of Minhyun's beautiful smile presented itself to him.

Forget about the ghost, he just found an angel.

The smiling angel ushers him in. Jaehwan feels sluggish and clumsy as he follows him in, like everything is moving slower than normal. Even taking off his slippers feels mechanical and strange, but Minhyun is still smiling and Jaehwan finds himself smiling back.

 

"So…?" Minhyun looks expectantly at Jaehwan. The guy's smile falter a little as he blinks a few time, uncomprehending. "Sorry?"

"I asked if you would like anything to drink. Or rather, would you like green tea or iced water? Because that's all I have now." Minhyun gives a small laugh in apology. He really should fill up his pantry.

Jaehwan's smile gets wider and Minhyun feels his hands itching to squish the chubby cheeks. "It's okay, we can just talk."

"Sure." Minhyun leads Jaehwan to the living room.

"You moved in last week?" Jaehwan eyes the paintings on the wall as they slowly make their way in. "We always thought this apartment would forever remain unoccupied."

"Yeah, this was my mum's studio." Minhyun watches Jaehwan moves towards the sliding door. "But she hadn't really worked here for the past few years," Jaehwan is pulling the curtain back, "and she only dropped by once in a while…" _aaand_ he's out. Minhyun follows him slowly, dread weighing his every step to the balcony. He finds Jaehwan sitting in his chair that's placed against the wall, a book in his hands as he leans back until his head touches the wall, just like how Minhyun sometimes sit when he takes a break from reading (and appreciates his neighbor's music better).

"You read your books here?" Jaehwan looks around him like he's trying to see what Minhyun sees when he sits there.

"Sometimes."

Jaehwan puts the book back on the chair and stands up to walk towards the railing, leaning out and peeking over the wall to his own balcony. He looks at Minhyun over his shoulders. "And this is also where you listen to me sing."

It was more of a statement rather than a question and if Minhyun isn't already drowning in embarrassment, he definitely would be now. He didn't put too much thought into the habit he acquired since last week but now he can see how it might look just a _teeny weeny_  voyeuristic. Just a tiny bit.

"I'm sorry." He hangs his head low.

"Why are you sorry?" Jaehwan comes closer with a grin. "I'm the one who should be sorry! I called you a ghost!" They both laugh at that.

"You told me to go away."

"Aww man. You heard that?" Jaehwan's giggling now and Minhyun thinks it's a wonderful contrast to his singing voice. "That wasn't me but I'm very sorry for that. I'll make sure they won't call you a ghost anymore."

Minhyun laughs again. "Thanks, I'd appreciate it."

"Okay."

"Yeah."

"…"

"So—"

"So how long have you been listening to me sing?" Jaehwan puts on a cheeky grin, making Minhyun groans softly.

"I was hoping we'd never get there."

"No, you're not getting out of this." Jaehwan giggles. "I really want to know!"

Minhyun sighs. "Let's see…" His face contorts into a grimace. "Since I moved in?" he says timidly. To his horror Jaehwan eyes widen immediately in surprise.

"Since a week ago?"

"I'm sorry!" Minhyun blurts quickly. "I know you might think I'm a creep or a weirdo but I swear—"

"Hey, relax!" Jaehwan grips both of Minhyun's arms but he quickly lets go when Minhyun freezes. "When did I say any of that?"

"I—"

"I'm actually very flattered that you were willing to listen to me sing. My roommates - no, my roommate and his annoying friend don't tolerate my singing as much. So the fact that you actually listened to me playing and singing for an entire week…" Jaehwan looks downward and rubs his nose. "It's like a compliment to me. So… Thank you."

Jaehwan beams at him so brightly that Minhyun thinks that he might actually mean it, so Minhyun lets go of the chagrin that had been weighing him down since he accidentally uttered (shamelessly sang) the three words earlier tonight, and returns the smile. He immediately feels lighter, literally and figuratively, and he attributes his slightly accelerated heartbeat to relief.

He also attributes Jaehwan's reddening ears to the warming night breeze.

Jaehwan is the first to break the silence. "I might have to charge you after this though." His cheeky grin is back. "I don't give performances for free."

"Of course." Minhyun chuckles. "I hope you accept green tea as payment."

"As long as you promise to let me know whenever you're listening."

Minhyun looks at his newly-acquainted neighbor with the squishy cheeks, warm voice and crazy giggles, and he can't keep his own grin off his face. "I make no promises."

 

**One month later**

The night is chilly but Jaehwan can feel a drop of sweat rolls down the side of his face as he enters the last few bars of the song. He's been working on it since last week and he's finally trying it out in its full, completed glory for the first (or third) time tonight. The last note is still lingering in the air when the applause comes in. All the way from his living room.

"That's amazing Jaehwan! You're the best!"

"You're so talented!"

"Really Daniel, we're so lucky to have such a great friend. So talented, clever…"

Jaehwan carefully props his guitar against the wall before getting up to close the sliding door.

"good-looking…"

He should've known the only reason those two asked to leave it open is to tease him.

"and kind too."

"Oh Jaehwan, can you let your ghost friend - oh sorry, your _angel_ know that his magazine subscription got into our mailbox. I thought you might want to give it to him yourse—"

The door finally closes. Through the glass Jaehwan can see Daniel and Seongwoo still grinning from the living room couch. He narrows his eyes at them for the most unimpressed look he can manage before heading to the front of the balcony. A deep sigh escapes his lips as he drapes his arms over the railing. "They're so annoying."

"But they're not wrong." Jaehwan turns to look at his neighbor on the other side. The guy continues. "You _are_ pretty talented, amazing, and simply the best." Jaehwan matches Minhyun's grin with his own. "And I've corrected the address for my subscription so you don't have to worry about that next month."

Jaehwan is glad that Minhyun totally glossed over the angel comment, though the pink ears and downward gaze show that it might not have slipped by unheard. Or maybe he's just cold.

"I'll bring your magazine over later, but only if you have coffee." He says that jokingly because he'll gladly consume any tea from Minhyun's diverse collection for an excuse to be in Minhyun's ~~presence~~ kitchen. Because his kitchen is nice.

"No, but I just bought orange pekoe tea!" Minhyun announces triumphantly before laughing along with Jaehwan.

"I'll be there," Jaehwan promises as he moves closer, wishing - not for the first time - for the wall to be gone.

Minhyun hums in return, not looking at Jaehwan but still smiling that pretty smile.

And for a while the two of them are contented with looking out towards the night view in silence until Minhyun breaks it. "Hey, Jaehwan?"

"Hmm?"

"Can you play Never?"

Jaehwan suppresses a laugh. "Again?"

"Please?" It's unfair that Minhyun is giving him _that_ smile - the one that always have the curious effect of making his chest feels warmer and harp music appears out of nowhere - but he doesn't want to look away. "It's my favourite," Minhyun adds in a soft voice, and Jaehwan can't help the smile on his face.

"Me too."

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Me three! 
> 
> Thanks for reading! This was planned as a short crack fic but oh well. Comments are greatly appreciated!
> 
> Thanks to the When Dusk Arrives mods for organizing the project and allowing me to be part of it! If you like this work, other works such as fan arts, poems, and other fics dedicated to Minhyun and Jaehwan can be found in the [Webzine](http://www.whenduskarrives.site/). You can check out our other platforms too: [Twitter](https://twitter.com/mh_dusk) | [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.me/mh_dusk)


End file.
